Present-day historians have shed the light of modern understanding to issues that plagued peoples of the past. One example of this can easily be seen in the ideals popularized in Europe from the late fifteenth to the mid seventeenth centuries regarding the Americas and its inhabitants. The Americas had a discernable impact upon Europe, and vice versa; though neither group initially set out to change the world that was the unforeseen and wholly "unintended consequence" of discovery. The discovery of the Americas and its inhabitants undoubtedly lead to changes in the intellectual, political and economic life in Europe.
The shift of intellectual thought was a slow, gradual process that continued far after the initial discovery of the Americas. The mere discovery of a land that had previously been unknown to most of the world was significant in and of itself, but the discovery of the peoples who inhabited the land was a revelation. Europeans had never before been exposed to such a diversity of peoples.
The Indians were unique and new to the Europeans. Initially they were plagued with curiosity about these newfound peoples. With exploration of these new lands and close study of these "new" people came disgust-for some were convinced that the Indians were inferior and incapable of reasonable thought. This view enhanced the idea that Indians were not even human-some tribes practiced human sacrifice. Thus a debate on the humanity of the Indians was waged. In 1537 Pope Paul III proclaimed that Native Americans were indeed human, though the extent of their humanity was still in conflict (62).
Printing was the main manner in which information and ideas regarding the new world were spread-the impact the Americas had on Europe would have been hampered without printing (65). There emerged many different writers during this time, and through them a few discernable beliefs. Some proclaimed a Golden Age, in which the daily life of Indians were romanticized into lazy freedom. Others used their writings to wage an attack against their political adversaries-Protestants wrote about the atrocities of the Catholic Spaniards, etc. A common theme among the writers of the time was personal gain.
Political changes during the time of discovery and exploration were essential to the success or failure of any nation involved in these ventures. Early on the Spanish (Ferdinand and Isabella) sought support of the pope, Alexander VI, to protect any possible discovery that Columbus and subsequent explorers would make on behalf of Spain.
In the 17th Century, widespread colonization of the new world was constantly changing the face of the Americas. European power-houses like England, France and Spain were building colonies on every coast line of the new world. The Native Americans were being forced from the lands they called home for many years, and those that wished to stay were being converted to Catholicism or other religious practices. In some parts of the Americas Native Americans were even being pressed into slavery.
Cronon raises the question of the belief or disbelief of the Indian’s rights to the land. The Europeans believed the way Indians used the land was unacceptable seeing as how the Indians wasted the natural resources the land had. However, Indians didn’t waste the natural resources and wealth of the land but instead used it differently, which the Europeans failed to see. The political and economical life of the Indians needed to be known to grasp the use of the land, “Personal good could be replaced, and their accumulation made little sense for ecological reasons of mobility,” (Cronon, 62).
From 1670 to 1770, the New World was colonized by different racial groups from Europe who lived together heterogeneously which led the New World to become “modern” and uniquely “American”. In 1670, many Europeans, like the Dutch, French, Irish, Scottish, English and German colonists, came to the New World either to break away from European traditions or to fulfill their desire for adventure. Butler wrote that the colonists all lived heterogeneously and brought their own cultures and religions to the New World to create diversity, which helped contribute America to become “modern”.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus was a self-made man who worked his way up to being the Captain of a merchant vessel. He gained the support of the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, for an expedition to the Indies. With the support of the Spanish monarchy, he set off to find a new and faster trade route to the Indies. Upon the arrival of his first voyage, Columbus wrote a letter to Luis de Santangel, a “royal official and an early supporter of his venture,” in February 1493 (35). The epistle, letter, entitled “Letter to Luis de Santangel Regarding the First Voyage” was copied and then distributed in Spain before being translated and spread throughout Europe. The Letter is held in such regard with the people as it is considered the first printed description of the new world. Through his description of the nature of the islands, Columbus decided the future fate of the islands. His description of the vast beauty of the nature around him, declares both the economic and nationalistic motivations for colonizing the new world.
In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue. And, when he reached his destination he killed, raped and enslaved innocent natives. Was Columbus a villain? The answer to that question, in my opinion, would be yes. Christopher Columbus was a cruel, self-centered, delusional man who does not deserve to be praised for the discovery of America.
Christopher Columbus, was he a hero, or villain? For about 500 years, people have praised him and celebrated his life as though he was someone who did good for us. Schools teach students that Columbus was a great man, found gold and pearls, and discovered new lands. Students are even taught the names of Christopher Columbus' three ships he used on his first voyage. However, they grow up not knowing the truth about Christopher Columbus, what he really did to 'accomplish' his tasks. I simply believe that schools should show both sides of Columbus' story, so that students can be aware of the facts behind the 'discovery' of Early America.
Many things were influenced when the Native Americans and Europeans encountered one another for the first time. There views on humankind’s relationship to nature, the relationship of men and women to each other, and the relationship between different groups of human beings were influenced. They were influenced by the stories that the Native Americans passed down from generation to generation, the story that the Europeans believed from the Bible, and the views of Aristotle.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, when the Europeans started to come over to the new world, they discovered a society of Indians that was strikingly different to their own. To understand how different, one must first compare and contrast some of the very important differences between them, such as how the Europeans considered the Indians to be extremely primitive and basic, while, considering themselves civilized. The Europeans considered that they were model societies, and they thought that the Indians society and culture should be changed to be very similar to their own.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass written by Frederick Douglass and edited by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. described how slaves in the U.S were treated before the American Civil War. The cruelties that these slaves faced every day were beyond what all of us would expected. They were abused with force and starvation by their masters and overseers, additionally they were also being suppressed by their owners, intellectually and economically. Many of us think of slavery as an act of confinement and denying a person of his/her freedom. However, American slavery is way worst than that. Slavery in U.S is a way to suppress generations of African Americans by treating them with violence. As Douglass described what he saw " I had seen [master] tie up a lame young woman, and whip her with a heavy cowskin upon her naked back..Master would keep this lacerated young women tied up in this horrid Comment [G5]: Deleted:y Comment [G1]: Inserted: were Comment [G2]: Inserted: ies Comment [G4]: Deleted:a Comment [G3]: Inserted:
Latin America and the American colonies were “tamed” based on completely different ideologies. From a Latin American perspective, the most important of the European explorers were of course, the Spanish and the Portuguese. These explorers arrived in Christopher Columbus’ “new world” with the express goal of bringing glory and prestige to their homeland. In stark contrast, settlers came to the colonies seeking freedom from the religious persecution in Europe. The different approaches used in each area affected how well and to what extent the African, indigenous, and European cultures combined and shaped the characteristics of the regions today.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”(Benjamin Franklin). Privacy is considered a civil liberty issue. It reflects the American fundamental values such as civil liberties, limited government, and individualism. It covers the whole range of civil liberties spectrum and it holds every aspect of our life. It plays a major role on our daily lives and it is also a main structure in the future of democratic political system (Wemmer, 2012.) Privacy has evolved overtime, privacy can be interpreted from the First ,Third, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth, Fourteenth Amendments in the Constitution; however Americans don’t consider the importance of privacy until cases such as Griswold v. Connecticut (381 U.S. 479, 1965), Roe v. Wade (410 U.S. 113, 1973), Mapp v. Ohio (367 U.S. 643, 1961) are brought to the court.
In this report I am going to talk about the rights people have to privacy and about the laws that go with privacy. Privacy is the thought that information that is confidential that is disclosed in a private place will not be available to third parties when the information would cause embarrassment or emotional distress to a person.
Right to privacy is meant to protect us all. Without invading personal lives, the laws are in place. When people are being felt violated that when they know the right to privacy has been invaded as well. This man, Jonathan Franzen has said about his feeling of privacy; “One of my neighbors in the apartment building across the street spends a lot of time at her mirror examining her pores, and I can see her doing it, just as she can undoubtedly see me sometimes. But our respective privacies remain intact as long as neither of us feels seen.” Privacy is not a concern if people feel safe with their surroundings. There are also people feel that their right to privacy is violated for the most random issues. (Right to Privacy)
Constitution, the founding fathers recognized that citizens in a democracy need privacy for their ‘persons, houses, papers, and effects.’ That remains as true as ever, but our privacy laws have not kept up as technology has changed the way we hold information.”
The First "Europeans" reached the Western Hemisphere in the late 15th century. Upon arrival they encountered a rich and diverse culture that had already been inhabited for thousands of years. The Europeans were completely unprepared for the people they stumbled upon. They couldn't understand cultures that were so different and exotic from their own. The discovery of the existence of anything beyond their previous experience could threaten the stability of their entire religious and social structure. Seeing the Indians as savages they made them over in their own image as quickly as possible. In doing so they overlooked the roots that attached the Indians to their fascinating past. The importance of this past is often overlooked. Most text or history books begin the story of the Americas from the first European settlement and disregard the 30,000 years of separate, preceding cultural development (Deetz 7).